Chapter 82: Going Up the Mountain

“Oh no, oh no, oh no! What a useless teammate!” Yu Dazhang jumped in place, muttering nonstop:

“How did I end up with such a useless teammate? I’m reaping what I sowed!”

He quickly dialed the number, but Zhang Sen didn’t answer even after the ringtone ended.

He called again—same result.

Is his phone on silent?

Yu Dazhang could only reopen the text message, hoping Zhang Sen had left some useful information.

【Don’t blame me—I’m just an ordinary cop, I never thought I’d become a detective.】

【I don’t have your sharp thinking—that’s why I’ve been stuck in the Second Detachment for four years.】

【But I’m content. In four years as a cop, I’ve lived up to this uniform.】

【Kindness, fairness, justice—these aren’t just big slogans on my wall; they’re my professional code.】

【When people turn away, unable to bear witnessing evil under the sun, cops turn toward it, staring down the devils in the shadows.】

【What I believe in, I will act upon.】

Fine, fine, fine—you’re trying to manipulate me, huh… Yu Dazhang’s head throbbed, as if it might explode at any moment.

He stared fixedly at the text message on his screen, its tone like a suicide note, his heart turning icy.

He knew Zhang Sen had no intention of coming back.

Chasing him was useless—Zhang Sen hopped on one leg, and even then Yu Dazhang couldn’t catch up.

If he didn’t go, he could just wait in this town for the task force to arrive—he wouldn’t be blamed.

Zhang Sen didn’t send this message to say goodbye.

He wanted to take all the blame under the guise of noble sacrifice, distancing Yu Dazhang from this whole affair.

Then, when Yu Dazhang showed this message to his superiors, every ounce of blame would land squarely on Zhang Sen.

“What the hell are you playing at, pretending to be a good guy!” Yu Dazhang yelled at his phone:

“I don’t need you to carry this for me!”

Now there was no turning back… Yu Dazhang had never once considered dodging responsibility.

A two-man team: one knowingly walks into danger to investigate, the other waits for backup.

That’s going to look terrible.

From the moment they formed the team, they were one unit.

Just like the two missing officers—if something happened, it would happen to both of them, never just one surviving.

Yu Dazhang knew clearly: Zhang Sen’s move had forced him into a corner.

If he didn’t go, he’d never be able to stay in the detective squad.

Showing this message to his superiors was no different from snitching.

Would he then become the very kind of person he despised?

After weighing it all, Yu Dazhang dialed Lu Zhongxin.

“Master, come to Fenglinzhen as soon as you can.”

“I’m already on my way,” Lu Zhongxin’s voice was urgent:

“Wei’s team just ordered all nearby units to head over and support you.”

“Remember the time,” Yu Dazhang said softly:

“If I haven’t contacted you in three hours, don’t bother looking for evidence when you reach Fenglinzhen—by then…”

“I am the evidence.”

Lu Zhongxin froze for a moment before grasping the meaning, then shouted loudly:

“You’re not going anywhere—wait in Fenglinzhen for me! I’ll be there in two hours, do you hear me?!”

At that moment, Yu Dazhang was calm.

Once a person made a firm decision, all previous hesitation and confusion vanished, leaving only resolve and determination.

“Master, I have no way out. If I…”

Yu Dazhang felt the next words were bad luck and swallowed them, paused, then continued:

“When you go up the mountain, make sure your magazine is full.”

“Yu Dazhang, you dare?! You better—” Before Lu Zhongxin could finish, Yu Dazhang hung up.

Sitting on the bed, he took a deep breath, pulled out his sidearm, and removed the magazine.

He removed the top blank round, replaced it with a live round, then reloaded the magazine fully.

When on duty, the top round in the magazine had no bullet head.

The coming operation was too dangerous—he couldn’t afford any mishaps.

After finishing, he double-checked everything, confirmed there were no issues, then stood and left the inn.

Twenty minutes later, a taxi pulled over at the foot of the mountain.

Yu Dazhang stepped out, looked up at the mountain path, and his eyelid twitched. So high…

“Brother, can you drive a bit higher? This slope doesn’t look too steep.”

“Brother, even if I wanted to, my car couldn’t handle it.”

The driver took the fare and firmly refused Yu Dazhang’s unreasonable request.

Damn it… Watching the taxi drive off, Yu Dazhang sighed helplessly and turned toward the mountain.

Luckily, the path wasn’t as hard as he imagined—he reached a village in under half an hour.

From the outside, it looked like an ordinary village: red-brick tile houses, stone-paved roads.

Each household had farming tools, crops, firewood, and other items parked outside their doors.

As he drew closer, the villagers quickly noticed him.

“Kill him!!”

A boy, about eleven or twelve, charged at Yu Dazhang wielding a paper-knife.

Please… collect… 6…9…books…!

Behind him, a group of children of various ages followed.

Each held homemade weapons: paper knives, paper guns, paper swords—even a paper-mache submachine gun.

The lead boy had a vacant, foolish expression, like the dim-witted son of a wealthy landlord.

Clearly a mentally impaired child, spoiled rotten by his parents.

“Stop it!”

Yu Dazhang snatched the paper knife from the boy’s hand and tore it into shreds in seconds.

The boy stared, stunned, at the shredded remains on the ground.

“Whose kid is this, so unruly?” Yu Dazhang gripped the boy’s arm tightly and barked:

“Where are your parents?!”

“Waaaaaah~~~~~” The boy burst into tears.

“Cry, you big baby!” Yu Dazhang yanked hard, lifting the boy off the ground:

“Cry one more time and I’ll throw you down the mountain.”

It worked—the boy instantly stopped crying.

He’s not that dumb… Yu Dazhang muttered to himself.

But for a kid his age to have such acting skills? He’s got talent.

The other children, seeing this fat stranger glaring at them, stepped back several paces.

“Lead the way—I’m going to find your parents,” Yu Dazhang ordered.

Perhaps intimidated by his demeanor, the children fell silent and began walking ahead.

They stopped before a large iron gate and stepped aside.

They clearly didn’t want to face whoever was inside—when Yu Dazhang raised his hand to knock, they all scattered.

After just a few knocks, the iron gate swung open from within.

A middle-aged woman stood behind it, staring at him, then glanced at the boy still clutched in his grip.

“What is this?” she asked, her tone cold.

“Your kid used a stupid paper knife and tore my clothes,” Yu Dazhang snapped.

The boy immediately protested loudly:

“I didn’t!”

“Say that again!” Yu Dazhang lifted him again.

“Don’t hurt him, let’s talk,” the woman hurriedly said:

“Come inside, we can discuss this.”

Too easy… Yu Dazhang had been waiting for her to say that.

At the gate, he’d already smelled a faint metallic odor—he’d been alert from the start.

Inside the courtyard stood a two-story self-built house, but it looked old—not built in recent years.

He casually scanned the surroundings.

His gaze settled on a wooden board, one meter square, near the firewood pile against the wall.

Lucky… Yu Dazhang felt a surge of quiet triumph.

The smell was coming from right under it.

The smell of rust, which even the mountain wind couldn't disperse, was mixed with a salty brine.

I haven't smelled such pure bloodstink in a while.

It's the start of the month—I'm checking who hasn't voted. Don't force me to kneel and beg you!!

(End of Chapter)